Coming on the heels of one of the most exciting qualifying sessions of the 2022 season, Saturday’s sprint race in Sao Paulo continued the momentum of what is shaping up to be one of the best grand prix weekends of the year.
Friday’s qualifying sessions featured plenty of intrigue as weather, tire strategy, and an accident played heavily into the final results. Throughout the three sessions, the rain came and went, continuously challenging teams to make the best tire selection for maximum grip.
As the third and final session began, reports of heavy rain falling imminently were abuzz within the paddock. Nine of the ten drivers who advanced to this last stage of qualifying came out in dry weather tires while Ferrari sent one-time Driver’s Championship leader Charles Leclerc out in intermediate tires designed for wet conditions.
The strategy most chose was simple: put in the best lap position with dry tires while track conditions still allowed for it. Ferrari hedged its bets with one of its drivers, Leclerc, on the intermediates, hoping that regardless of the weather, one of their drivers could perform a top lap time.
Haas’ Kevin Magnussen was first on the track as the session began and quickly went to work on putting in fast lap times. Minutes into the session, Magnussen led the pack with a blistering provisional pole lap time.
With about eight minutes left in the last session, Mercedes’ George Russell lost control of his car and ended up beached in the gravel, causing a red flag that stopped the race while stewards removed his car from the track.
The delay would prove critical as the rain began pouring down, soaking the track.
Even as the race resumed, no drivers took the track. Even with wet weather tires, the times set earlier during the session on dry tires would be simply too fast to surpass. This meant that Magnussen would hold onto the pole position, securing the top spot for the first time in his career and for the first time for the Haas team ever.
Heading into today’s sprint, all eyes were on Magnussen to see if his qualifying success would carry over to the actual race pace.
With beautiful weather, the drivers took the track to begin, each one having chosen the softest tire compound for the 24-lap sprint race except current Driver’s Champion Max Verstappen and Williams’ Nicholas Latifi who both chose the medium compound.
Commentators questioned the move, but there was concern that the soft compound would not hold up across the entire 24-lap stint and that the medium was the safer selection, especially in a dominant car like Verstappen’s Red Bull.
As the lights went out, Magnussen started beautifully, jumping out into the lead convincingly. The order largely held in the front of the pack, but the midfield saw a lot of action early, capped by both Alpine drivers colliding.
The accident effectively ended Fernando Alonso’s day as his car took severe front wing damage, forcing him to pit for a replacement and sending him to the back of the grid. His teammate Esteban Ocon’s car was also damaged and would cost him pace for the rest of the race.
Unfortunately, on lap 3, Magnussen’s dream of taking a win from the pole ended as Verstappen easily passed him on a straight due to the sheer difference in top speed between the cars. Magnussen would slowly tumble down the order, eventually resting in eighth place for points finish.
Verstappen was soon challenged by Russell in some of the most exciting racing of the season. The two battled over several laps with both drivers demonstrating extremely high racing intelligence and etiquette.
Eventually, however, Russell’s assault would prove too much for Verstappen, and the Mercedes driver took first and would never look back.
Verstappen would eventually be passed by Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton as well, raising questions on whether the Red Bull simply does not have the pace in Brazil or if the medium compound tire selection was chiefly responsible.
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez finished behind Verstappen in 5th followed by his chief rival for second place in the Driver’s Championship, Charles Leclerc.
The final standings of the sprint race determine the starting order for tomorrow’s grand prix race. Due to a five-grid engine penalty taken by Sainz, both Mercedes drivers will start on the front row in the one-two position, followed by the Red Bulls on the second row in three-four.
Sunday’s race begins at 12 p.m. CST.